Automated method for placing sliced food stacks in packages

ABSTRACT

A system and method are provided that allow meat logs to be manually loaded into a slicing station and thereafter be continuously automatically processed at the slicing station, a harping station, and an insertion station for automated packaging thereof without the need for handling of the meat stacks by workers. To this end, the slicing station is effective to form smaller sections or chubs from the meat logs and to do so such that the chubs are provided with substantially parallel flat end-faces to ensure that high quality meat slices are generated therefrom. The chubs are then transported to the harping station where each of the chubs undergoes a single cutting operation, thus simultaneously forming the meat slices therefrom and substantially maintaining the slices in the configuration of the chubs for generating well-formed stacks of the slices. Thereafter, the stacks are received at the insertion station where they are transferred to their packages, on an automated basis without the need for manual handling thereof. This is enabled due to the well-formed stacks generated by the harping station which allows the stacks to be dropped into the packages aligned therebelow.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an automated system and method for slicing meatproducts and placing the sliced meat products in stacked form intopackages.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In a prior process for slicing and packaging smaller sized slices ofluncheon meat, e.g. slices on the order of 1.75 inches in diameter and0.120 inch in thickness, the luncheon meat is sliced into a stack thatis then manually placed into a package. More particularly, the packageincludes a multi-compartment tray, and the worker grabs a stack ofslices off of a conveyor for placement into a particular one of the traycompartments.

A problem with the above-described system and method is in forming thestacks of meat slices. Currently, an initial meat slice is cut from alog of the luncheon meat product with the cut slice free-falling ontothe conveyor surface. Subsequent slices similarly undergo a free-fallingaction for landing in a stack one on top of the other until the desirednumber of slices in the stack has been achieved. Thereafter, the stackof slices is advanced downstream by the conveyor to the insertionstation where they are manually placed into the tray compartments, asdescribed above. It has been found that it requires very precise controlover the process parameters in order for the stacks to develop in awell-defined manner with the above-described process.

More specifically, the logs are fed toward a cutting blade that has itscutting faces substantially orthoganal to the longitudinal axis of themeat log with the elongate logs being fed to the blade on a slightdownward incline. The blade cutting faces can be configured to directthe cut slices in the preferred manner. In this regard, the slices cutfrom the end of the log need to undergo a reorientation as theyfree-fall and come to rest on the conveyor surface or another slice inthe stack from their orientation when part of a log. Of course, thisrenders precise control over these slices extremely difficult andgenerally produces misshapen stacks such as those having accordionshapes where the individual adjacent slices in the stack are offset fromone another in the lateral direction, skewed stacks, tipped over stacks,as well as other slice defects. Where workers observe that the frequencyof the misshapen, or tipped over stacks are increasing, the line has tobe shutdown so that the process parameters causing the stacking problemcan be identified and corrected. Such parameters include temperature ofthe meat, sharpness of the cutting blade, equipment setup, and the like.As is apparent, this type of line shutdown reduces slice yield, lowersthroughput and decreases worker productivity. Moreover, misshapen stackscan also cause efficiency problems in terms of the speed at which aworker can manually place a stack into the package compartment and cancreate a less than desirable presentation in the packages due to thepresence of sloppy stacks therein.

Accordingly, there is a need for a system and method for placing slicedfood stacks, i.e. sliced luncheon meat, into packages that limits theneed for manual handling of the stacks of luncheon meat slices. Further,a system and method for slicing meat into stacks and placing the stacksof sliced meat in packages is needed that can increase workerproductivity and generate faster throughput.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, an automated system and methodfor slicing a meat product formed into stacks and placing the stackedslices into packages is provided. In the preferred form, after a log ofmeat is loaded into an initial upstream slicing station, the slicedstacks of meat are generated and packaged without the need for manualhandling thereof unlike the previously described meat processing systemwhere workers manually picked up and placed the sliced meat stacks intothe package compartments. To this end, the meat log is sliced intosmaller sections or chubs which are then, in turn, sliced into theindividual meat slices for automated placement into the packagecompartment. By utilizing an extra slicing operation for forming a chubof meat that corresponds to the amount of meat to be placed into thepackage, there can be achieved greater control over the subsequentslicing action performed on the chub in terms of maintaining the slicesin a stacked form thereof so that well-formed stacks of sliced meatproducts are generated. In other words, the chub has an outerconfiguration which in the illustrated form is a short cylindricalsection of the log that matches the outer configuration of the slicedmeat stack generated from the log. The cut slices do not undergo afree-falling action and the attendant difficulties this creates inachieving uniform stacks of sliced meat products as in the priorprocess. In contrast, the present system and method's use of two slicingstages allows for the production of well-formed stacks of sliced meatproducts that are substantially uniform in configuration from one stackto the next. In this regard, it is preferred that the chubs be orientedvertically so that they are lying flat with one of their cut facesagainst a support surface when they are sliced, as describedhereinafter.

These uniformly, well-formed stacks of meat slices allow for theautomated transfer of the stacks into the package compartment to takeplace without handling by workers, as mentioned above. The well-formednature of these stacks enables the automated transfer to take place witha highly controlled guiding action as the stacks can be transferred,preferably by a vertical free-fall into packages therebelow.Accordingly, the present system and method significantly reduces thepossibilities of introducing contamination to the meat slices due tohandling thereof. In addition, the system and method herein can increaseproductivity by achieving faster throughput, improved yields, and lowermaintenance and labor costs.

In a preferred form of the invention, an automated system for slicingmeat and placing the sliced meat in stacks into a package therefor isprovided. This system includes a slicing station having a chub slicerfor slicing a chub of predetermined size from a log of meat fed to theslicer. The predetermined chub size substantially corresponds to apredetermined amount of meat to be placed in a compartment of thepackage. A chub slicing or harping station includes spaced harpingblades and a chub advancement mechanism. The harping station receiveschubs from the slicing station with the chubs pushed past the bladeswith a predetermined amount of force via the chub advancement mechanismto form a predetermined number of stacked meat slices from the chub. Astack insertion station receives the stacked meat slices from theharping station and includes a stack guide that maintains control overthe stack of meat slices for automated transfer thereof into the packagecompartment. As is apparent, the above system substantially eliminatesthe need for workers to place stacks of meat slices into packages as itcreates well-formed stacks of meat slices by cutting the chub from themeat log and then slicing it via the harping blades at the harpingstation which avoids having the slices undergo a free-falling actionafter they are cut from the log as in the prior process and method. Withthe stack of meat slices well-formed via the slicing and chub harpingstations, the stack insertion station can automatically transfer thestack into the package compartment while maintaining control thereoverin a simple and effective manner.

The chub slicer of the slicing station preferably includes a cuttingassembly that supports the log on either side of a narrow slot throughwhich a rotary cutting blade passes for slicing a chub of predeterminedsize from the meat log. In this manner, the meat log is not cantileveredfrom the support which can cause drooping and misshapen cuts as opposedto the desired planar cut end-face that is substantially normal to thelongitudinal axis of the log. It is preferred that the rotary blade havesubstantially parallel planar cutting surface portions that pass throughthe log in the area aligned with the slot to further enablesubstantially flat end-faces to be formed on the cut chub. With thepresent chub slicer, the slices at the end of the chub including the endfaces thereof will be of a high quality, i.e. with flat, parallelopposite faces, similar to the intermediate slices therebetween.

In a preferred form, the harping blades include a drive and blade mountassembly that cooperate so that the blades can undergo reciprocatingmovement. More specifically, the harping blades have an elongate flatconfiguration with a cutting edge along one edge against which the chubis pushed via the chub advancement mechanism, and the drive causes theblades to undergo reciprocating movement in the lengthwise directionthereof transverse to the pushing of the chubs. The reciprocatingmovement produces a slicing action on the chubs so as to minimize theforce by which the advancement mechanism must push the chub through theblades. Accordingly, the likelihood of the blades deflecting as the chubis pushed thereagainst is reduced for forming high quality slices ofmeat.

Where the stack is in its preferred vertical orientation at the stackinsertion station, the stack guide can include a weight that is engagedagainst the topmost slice in the stack. Thus, when the package isaligned with the stack, a gating mechanism at the insertion station canbe actuated to shift from its support position to a release positionwhich allows the stack with the guide weight thereagainst to fall intothe aligned package therebelow. In this manner, the present systemprovides a controlled free-fall to a well-formed stacked of meat sliceswith the guide weight bearing against the upper slice to keep the stackin vertical alignment so that the stack drops in centered into thecompartment clearing the sidewalls thereof. Thus, the present systemavoids having individual slices that are airborne and fall into a stackwhich can create significant variations in the form of the stack fromone stack to the next absent high-precision control over the variousprocess parameters that affect the trajectory of the slices cut from thelog. Further, there is no manual handling of the stack of slices forplacement into the compartment as in the prior process.

In another aspect of the invention, an automated processing method for ameat product is provided including cutting a section of the meat productfrom a larger section thereof, the section corresponding to apredetermined amount of the meat product to be placed in a package,slicing the section into a predetermined number of slices that areformed simultaneously in a single slicing operation so that a stack ofthe slices is formed, aligning the package with the stack of slices forreceipt in the package, and shifting the stack of slices automaticallyinto the aligned package to avoid manual handling of the stack.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a slicing station for forming chubs froma log of meat, and a vibratory conveyor for transporting the chubs forfurther processing in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side-elevational view of an indexing feed mechanism and achub slicing assembly adjacent outlet of the feed mechanism in theslicing station;

FIG. 3 is a elevational view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2 showing meatlogs placed in support channels leading to inlet of the feed indexingmechanism;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a log support showing a clearance slotfor supporting the log thereacross and allowing a rotary blade, shown inphantom lines, to pass therethrough;

FIG. 5 is a side-elevational view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 4 showinga log on the support spanning the slot and the blade cutting a chub fromthe log;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the outlet of the indexing mechanism andthe chub slicing assembly showing the rotary blade as it passes throughthe slot to cut chubs from the logs at the slicing station;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged perspective view similar to FIG. 6 showing theprogression of the rotary blade so as to cut all of the chubs from thelogs in a single pass of the blade through the slot of the support;

FIG. 8 is a front-elevational view of the rotary cutting blade for thechub slicer;

FIG. 9 is a side-elevational view of the cutting blade showing oppositesubstantially parallel planar cutting surface portions of the blade;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the rotary blade takenalong line 10-10 of FIG. 8;

FIGS. 11 and 12 are color schematic perspective views of a table thatreceives chubs from the chub conveyor for further processing into stacksof slices for placement into compartments of trays on a conveyortraveling below the table;

FIG. 13 is a color schematic perspective view of one of the operatingunits on the table showing a staging area for the chubs and a chubadvancement mechanism for pushing the chubs for slicing thereof;

FIG. 14 is a color photographic view of the operating unit showing chubsentering the staging area from a chute extension portion of a channel onthe chub conveyor;

FIGS. 15-18 are color photographic views of the operating unit showingsequential operations of a slide member and paddle member for indexingthe chub into alignment with a pusher member of the chub advancementmechanism;

FIGS. 19 and 20 are color schematic perspective views of reciprocatingharping blades in a blade set showing blade mount bars and mounting armsattached thereto;

FIGS. 21-23 are color photographic views showing details of the blademount bars and their arms securing the blades thereto;

FIG. 24 is a color photographic view of an eccentric blade drive forreciprocating the harping blades;

FIG. 25 is a color schematic perspective view of the eccentric bladedrive showing pivotal plate actuators connected to the drive and to theblade mount bars;

FIG. 26 is an exploded perspective view of the eccentric blade driveshowing the construction of eccentric drive sections thereabout;

FIG. 27 is a plan view of the assembled eccentric blade drive sectionsof FIG. 26;

FIG. 28 is a color schematic perspective view of a chub centeringmechanism showing upper and lower shiftable plate members and a linkageactuation system therefor operated by a pressure source to keep theplate members equally spaced from a center point therebetween;

FIGS. 29 and 30 are color schematic perspective views of the chub pushermember, the chub centering mechanism, and an insertion station showingthe chub pusher member traveling between the plate members and to theinsertion station;

FIGS. 31 and 32 are color photographic views showing the chub pushermember extended to push the chub through harping blades and the stack toa receptacle at the insertion station;

FIGS. 33 and 34 are color schematic perspective views of a stack guideand a gating mechanism at the chub insertion station showing an apertureof a gate member of the gating mechanism indexed to the receptacle andan enlarged weighted head of the guide shifting downwardly through abottom opening in the receptacle and through the aligned gate memberaperture;

FIGS. 35-37 are color photographic views of the operation at theinsertion station showing a stack in the receptacle, the weightedengagement head brought into engagement therewith, and the gate memberindexed to bring its aperture into alignment with the receptacle openingallowing the stack and engaged head to fall therethrough; and

FIG. 38 is a flow diagram of the method of operation of the presentsystem for generating chubs from meat logs and stacks of meat slicesfrom the chubs that are deposited into packages therefor.

DETERMINED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In FIGS. 1, 15 and 32, the various stations for cutting and slicing of afood product 10, e.g. precooked luncheon meats, into stacks and forautomated placement thereof in packages 14 are shown. FIG. 38 shows themethod of operation at the various stations to provide an automatedsystem 16 that slices the luncheon meat 10, generates well-formed stacks12 of the sliced meat 10, and automatically transfers the well-formedstacks 12 into the packages 14 avoiding manual handling of the meat 10at each of the operating stations.

More specifically, the stations include a slicing station 18, and a chubharping station 20 and stack insertion station 22 adjacent to eachother, as can be seen in FIG. 32. After a worker loads meat logs 24 intofeed section 26 at the slicing station 18, handling by the workers ofthe meat 10 ceases and is no longer required as the meat logs 24 are cutinto chubs 26 that correspond to the predetermined amount of meat to beplaced in an individual package 14, and specifically a particularcompartment 28 thereof. Thereafter the chubs 26 are transported to theharping station 20 where they are sliced into well-formed stacks 12 of apredetermined number of meat slices 30 that enable automated transferthereof into the package compartments 28, as will be more fullydescribed hereinafter.

As mentioned, the present system 16 cuts the logs 24 into chubs 26 priorto forming slices 30 of the meat product with the size of the chubs 26corresponding to the predetermined amount of meat that is to be placedinto the package compartment 28. Where the package 14 includes othercompartments 32 for other ready-to-eat food products, the system 16herein is well adapted for use with the Lunchables® product line of theassignee herein. In this regard, other food items in addition to thesliced meat product 10 herein can include a farinaceous food, one ormore sauces or dips, and a confectionary or desert food, some of whichmay be prepackaged for placement in the other compartments 32. Examplesof farinaceous roods include breadsticks, pizza crust, nacho chips andthe like. Examples of sauces or dips include cheese sauce, salsa, pizzasauce and the like. Examples of desert foods include candy pieces,cookies and the like. In addition to the precooked meat product 10,shredded cheese or other cheese products can also be included in themeal kit. If desired, other components can also be included in the mealkit, such as utensils or other implements to assist with assembling thefood items, spices, napkins and the like.

Returning to the description of the system 16 herein, by forming thechubs 26, the subsequent slicing operation conducted at the harpingstation 20 can be much more controlled in terms of how the stacks 12 areformed as instead of individual slices coming off of the logs 24 of meat10, the slices 30 of a particular stack 12 are all formed simultaneouslyin a single cutting operation at the harping station 20 so that thesliced stacks 12 of meat slices 30 substantially retain the sameconfiguration as that of the chubs 26. As shown, the chubs 26 preferablyhave substantially parallel flat end-faces 34 and 36 with a cylindricalouter surface 38 extending therebetween. In this regard, the logs 24also include a cylindrical outer surface thereof; however, it is alsocontemplated that the logs 24 and the chubs 26 cut therefrom can have adifferent outer configuration such as a polygonal configuration whilenot departing from the invention herein.

In forming the chubs 26, it is important that the cut end-faces 34 and36 be well-formed, i.e. flat and parallel, so that the slices 30 formedfrom the chubs 26 are likewise well-formed. For this purpose, chubslicing assembly 40 at the slicing station 18 includes a log support 42on which the logs 24 rest on either side of cutting area 44 throughwhich cutting blade 46 passes. In this manner, the logs 24 aresubstantially fully supported on both sides of the cutting area 44 sothat as the blade 46 cuts the logs 24, there will be no pulling of thechubs 26 before they are fully severed from the logs 24 as could occurif the logs were not supported on the downstream side of the cuttingarea 44. In other words, if the logs 24 were simply left to hangdownstream of the cutting area 44, it has been found that suchcantilevered logs 44 will droop and cause misshapen or other than planarcut end-faces 34 and 36 to result.

Another contributing factor to having the desired planar faces 34 and 36of the chubs 26 is the configuration of the cutting blade 46 itself. Inthis respect, the cutting blade 46 is preferably of the rotary typehaving a plate-like form with a circular outer configuration and acentral hub assembly 47 including a through aperture 48 formed therein,as best seen in FIGS. 8-10. The hub assembly 48 is mounted to aneccentric shaft of a blade drive motor offset from the axis of therotary output generated thereby so that the rotary blade 46 undergoes aneccentric, orbital motion with the cutting area 44 lying in the orbitalpath through which it travels during slicing operations.

The configuration of the cutting blade 46 is generally flat in that itincludes substantially parallel planar cutting surface portion 50 and 52on opposite faces 46 a and 46 b of the blade 46, as can best be seen inFIG. 9. Unlike prior blades having contoured cutting faces that canimpart a desired motion to the cut product as the blade passestherethrough, the present blade with the opposite parallel flat cuttingsurface portions 50 and 52 will pass through the logs 24 and will pushthe cut surfaces equally away from each other, thus ensuring that theblade 46 does not impart any contour to the cut faces 34 and 36 of thechubs 26 that is other than planar as is desired. Accordingly, with thecombination of the log support 42 that spans the cutting area 44 and theflat configuration of the cutting blade 46, the chubs 26 formed in theslicing station 18 will have the desired flat, parallel end-faces 34 and36 which, in turn, leads to the high quality of the meat slices 30 inthe subsequent slicing operation, as described hereinafter.

After the chubs 26 are formed at the slicing station 18, they aretransported to the harping station 20. At the harping station 20, thechubs 26 are received in a staging area 54, that is preferably sized toreceive a single one of the chubs 26, as shown in FIGS. 13-16. With thechub 26 in the staging area 54, it is then shifted into alignment with achub advancing mechanism 56, as will be described more fullyhereinafter. The chub advancing mechanism 56 is then operable to pushthe chubs 26 through a set of harping blades 58, as can be seen in FIGS.19 and 29-31.

Referring to FIG. 20, generally the harping blades 58 have a flat,elongate configuration having one of the edges 60 thereof serrated, andagainst which the chubs 26 are pushed. The harping blades 58 are shownin their preferred form as extending horizontally such that the chub 26is preferably oriented in a vertical fashion with one of the end-faces34 and 36 thereof resting on a support surface as the chub 26 is pushedthrough the harping blades 58. As can best be seen in FIGS. 13, 29, 30and 32, the chub advancing mechanism 56 preferably includes a arcuateengagement end portion 62 for bearing against the chub cylindrical outersurface 38 as it is pushed through the harping blades 58. In addition,the advancing mechanism 56 is slotted at the end portion 62 to provideclearance for the harping blades 58 as the chub 26 is pushedtherethrough. The arcuate engagement end 62 preferably extends forsubstantially the full height of the chub outer surface 38 between theends 34 and 36 thereof and has a curvature that extends forapproximately 180 degrees about the chub outer surface 38 so that itsecurely engages and centers with the chub 26 to push it through theharping blades 58.

In the illustrated and preferred form, there are five harping blades 58vertically equally spaced from each other so as to generate six slices30 from the chub 26 when pushed therethrough. As is apparent, theslicing operation performed by the harping blades 58 causes the slices30 to be formed simultaneously from a single one of the chubs 26. As hasbeen discussed, this eliminates the free-falling of meat slices asoccurred in the prior process, and thus better generates on a consistentbasis slices 30 that are in well-formed stacks 12 which substantiallymatches the cylindrical outer configuration of the chubs 26 themselves.

For pushing the chubs 26 through the harping blades 58, the advancingmechanism 56 includes a power actuator 64 that causes the engagement end62 to push on the chub 26 with a predetermined amount of force. In apreferred form, the actuator 64 is a power cylinder 66 which whenactuated causes the engagement end 62 to shift toward the harping blades58, as shown in FIG. 13. The cylinder 66 includes a regulator 67 thatlimits the amount of force applied by the engagement end 62 to the chubs26. In this manner, the force with which the chubs 26 will engage theharping blades 58 can be precisely controlled so as to avoid deflectingthe blades 58 which can potentially cause misshapen meat slices 30 to beformed from the chub 26.

It is preferred that the harping blades 58 undergo reciprocating motion,preferably along their lengthwise extent. In this regard, a drive 68 anda blade mount assembly 70 are provided (FIGS. 19-27) that cooperate toproduce the reciprocating action of the harping blades 58. As can bestbe seen in FIGS. 24-26, the drive preferably is an eccentric blade drive68 for generating the oscillating or reciprocating movements of theharping blades 58. To this end, a pivotal actuator 72 is connectedbetween the drive 68 and the blade mount 70. The pivotal actuator 72 isoperable to translate the rotary, eccentric motion of the drive 68 to areciprocating movement of the harping blades 58 via the blade mountassembly 70, as described further hereinafter. Thus, as the eccentricdrive 68 rotates, the pivotal actuator 72 will alternatively pull andpush on portions of the blade mount assembly 70 to generatereciprocation of the harping blades 58. The reciprocating action of theblades 58 enables the output force from the power cylinder 66 to be keptto a minimum while still achieving well-formed slices 30 from the chub26. To this end, it is found that a regulated force of approximately 10psi in the cylinder 66 is sufficient to cause the chub 26 to be pushedwith the desired force via the chub advancing mechanism 56 for slicingthe chub 26 with the reciprocating harping blades 58 into well-formedmeat slices 30. At this low force level, the blades 58 are less likelyto deflect or wander such as 10 in an up and down fashion that couldcause wavy or other than planar cut faces on the meat slices 30.

As previously mentioned, the harping station 20 and insertion station 22are preferably closely adjacent to each other, as shown in FIG. 32. Inthis manner, the chub advancing mechanism 56 can be utilized to transferthe sliced chubs 26 from the harping station 20 to the insertion station22 adjacent thereto. In the preferred and illustrated form, a chubcentering mechanism 74 is generally disposed at the harping station 20and preferably extending to the insertion station 22, as will bedescribed more fully hereinafter. The centering mechanism 74 includesopposing upper and lower members 76 and 78 between which the chub 26 isadvanced by the chub advancing mechanism 56. The members 76 and 78 arebiased toward one another so as to engage the chub faces 34 and 36,respectively, with equal and opposite force. The centering mechanism 74is arranged so that the mid-point between the upper and lower members 76and 78 corresponds to the vertical mid-point of the set of harpingblades 58. Thus, the centering mechanism 74 keeps the vertical center ofthe chub 26 aligned with that of the set of harping blades 58 thusensuring that the top and bottom slices including respective end-faces34 and 36 are of substantially equal thickness despite potentialvariations in the height of the cylindrical outer surface 38 of the chub26 between the end-faces 34 and 36 thereof. Accordingly, at a minimum,with the chub centering mechanism 74, the top and bottom slices in thestack 12 will be of equal thickness and the intermediate slices, therebeing four such slices where there are five harping blades 58, will beof equal thickness based on the equal spacing between the blades 58. Byway of example and not limitation, with the Lunchables® product line,the thickness of the intermediate meat slices can be approximately 0.120inch with the small sized luncheon meat of approximately 1.75 inches indiameter. The height of the stack 12 will be approximately 0.875 inchwith slight variations therefrom due to any variations in the height ofthe chub 26 that might be produced at the slicing station 18.

After the chub 26 has been sliced by being pushed through the harpingblades 58 and between the chub centering mechanism members 76 and 78with the chub advancing mechanism 56, the stack 12 of meat slices 30slides out from between the members 76 and 78 into the insertion station22. A conveyor 80 brings the packages 14 to the insertion station 22 forautomatically being filled with stacks 12 of meat slices 30, as can beseen in FIGS. 11 and 12. The conveyor is preferably an indexing conveyor80 that aligns the packages 14, and specifically the compartment 28thereof designated for receipt of the stack 12 of meat slices 30, withthe stacks 12. In this regard and as shown in FIGS. 33-37, a stackgating mechanism 82 is disposed between the stack 12 and the alignedpackages 14. With the stacks 12 in their preferred verticalconfiguration after having the chubs 26 sliced at the harping station20, the package delivery conveyor 80 will run below the gating mechanism82. Accordingly, the gating mechanism 82 has a support position whichallows the advancing mechanism 56 to slide the stack 12 off of the lowermember 78 of the centering mechanism 74 with the lowest slice in thestack 12 including one of the end-faces 34 and 36 engaged flush on thegating mechanism 82. Once the package conveyor 80 has brought thepackage compartment 32 into alignment with the stack 12, the gatingmechanism 82 shifts to its release position which allows the stack 12 tofall into the aligned compartment 28. Thus, the insertion station 18receives very tight, well-formed stacks 12 of meat slices 30 from theharping station 20 and automatically transfers them into the packagecompartments 28 therefor without the need for handling of the meatstacks 12.

To ensure that the stacks 12 are properly transferred into the package14 while maintaining their well-formed configuration as previouslydescribed, a stack guide 84 is provided at the insertion station 22.During transfer of the stack 12, the guide 84 can engage against one ofthe end faces 34 or 36 of the stack 12 for pushing the stack 12 into thealigned package compartment 28 while maintaining the substantialwell-formed cylindrical outer configuration thereof. With the stack 12in its preferred vertical orientation with one end 34 or 36 resting onthe gating mechanism 82 as previously described, an actuator 86 for theguide 84 is operable to shift a weighted engagement head 88 to bearagainst the other of the stack end faces 34 or 36 which faces upwardlytoward the head 88. Thus, when the gating mechanism 82 is shifted to itsrelease position, the stack 12 will fall into the compartment 28 withthe weighted head 88 engaged thereagainst to undergo a free-fallingaction therewith. With the weighted head 88 of the guide 84 fallingvertically under the influence of gravity, there is less likelihood thatthe meat slices 30 in the stack 12 will lose their desired configurationin the stack 12 during this transfer into the compartment 28.Accordingly, the stack guide 84 keeps control over the free-fallingstack 12 of meat slices 30 so that they fall properly into the alignedpackage compartment 28 therebelow minimizing the instances of having theslices 30 in the stack tilting or shifting out therefrom and/or engaginga compartment wall or the like during the transfer. In this manner, thesystem 16 and method herein generally provides an improved presentationof the meat stacks 12 in the packages 14 over stacks that are manuallyplaced therein with the prior process where the stacks are more likelyto be misshapen, as previously described.

Accordingly, the present system 16 and method allow meat logs 24 to bemanually loaded into the slicing station 18 and thereafter becontinuously automatically processed at the stations 18, 20 and 22 forautomated placement into packages therefor without the need for handlingof the meat stacks 12 by workers. To this end, the slicing station 18 iseffective to form smaller sections or chubs 26 from the meat logs 24 andto do so such that the chubs 26 are provided with substantially parallelflat end-faces 34 and 36 to ensure that high quality meat slices 30 aregenerated therefrom. The chubs 26 are then transported to the harpingstation 20 where each of the chubs 26 undergoes a single cuttingoperation, thus simultaneously forming the meat slices 30 therefrom andsubstantially maintaining the slices 30 in the configuration of thechubs 26 for generating well-formed stacks 12 of the slices 30.Thereafter, the stacks 12 are received at the insertion station 22 wherethey are transferred to their packages 14, on an automated basis withoutthe need for manual handling thereof. This is enabled due to thewell-formed stacks 12 generated by the harping station 20 which allowsthe stacks 12 to be dropped into the packages 14 aligned therebelow.

Turning next to more of the details and referencing FIGS. 1-7 todescribe the slicing station 18 and, more particularly, the feed section25 and the chub slicing assembly 40 thereat, a frame 90 is provided tosupport the feed section 25 and the chub slicing assembly 40. The feedsection 25 includes a plurality of channels 92 into which the meat logs24 fit for being manually loaded therein. The channels 92 can have anupwardly facing concave surface 94 which generally matches the outercylindrical contour of the logs 24, as best seen in FIG. 3. The channels92 are oriented at a downward incline via support leg 96 of the frame 90so that the logs 24 are fed downwardly toward the slicing assembly 40.

At the lowermost end of the channels 92, an indexing feed mechanism 98is provided for controlled feeding of the logs 96 to the slicingassembly 40. Accordingly, inlet end 100 of the feed mechanism 98 isadjacent the lower end of the channels 92 and outlet end 102 of the feedmechanism 98 is adjacent the slicing assembly 40. The indexing mechanism98 can include upper and lower belt assemblies 104 and 106 whichcooperate to securely grip the logs 96 for advancing them bypredetermined increments to the slicing assembly 40. In this regard, theupper belt assembly 104 includes a lower run 108 thereof that is inopposing substantially parallel relation to an upper run 110 of thelower belt assembly 106 for engaging the upper and lower portions of thelogs 24 therebetween. To this end, the spacing between the parallel runs108 and 110 is slightly less than the diameter of the logs 24 to ensurethat there is no slippage of the logs 24 therebetween. In addition, thebelt assemblies 104 and 106 can include traction belts 112 that haveraised transversely extending ribs 114 thereon, as best seen in FIGS. 6and 7. These ribs 114 securely grip the outer surface of the logs 24without breaking through the surface or otherwise damaging the logs 24.Accordingly, the belt assemblies 104 and 106 can provide the feedmechanism 98 with precision-indexed movements of the logs 94 to theslicing assembly 40 under command of a programmable logic controller(PLC) or the like so that the chubs 26 are formed with substantially thesame axial length of their outer surface 38 between the ends 34 and 36thereof from one slicing operation to the next.

In the preferred and illustrated form, the four channels 92 are providedon an incline table 115 supported by the frame leg 96. To raise thechannels 92 to the desired height, a base box portion 116 of the frame90 is supported raised off the floor adjacent the four corners thereofby lower adjustment legs 118 with the leg 96 extending from the uppersurface of the box portion 116 to the table 115, as shown in FIG. 1. Thefour channels 92 lead to two pairs of upper and lower belts 112 a and112 b with each belt pair operable to feed two logs 24 to the slicingassembly 40. The pairs of belts 112 a and 112 b are trained aboutrollers 120 rotatably mounted to a belt sub-frame 122 secured to thetable 115 via mounting bars 124 on either side thereof.

The rollers 120 can include upper and lower tensioning rollers 126 thatdeflect upper and lower runs 128 and 130 of the belt assemblies 104 and106, respectively. As best seen in FIG. 2, the upper deflection roller126 causes the upper run 128 to travel back upstream from the outlet end102 of the feed mechanism 98 at an upward angle and then back downtoward the inlet end 100 of the indexing mechanism 98, and the lowerdeflection roller 126 causes the lower run 130 to travel back upstreamfrom the indexing mechanism outlet end 102 at a downward angle and thenback at an upward angle to the indexing mechanism inlet end 100. Thetensioning rollers 126 are effective to remove slack that can build upin the belt assemblies 104 and 106 during their operation and cause lessthan precision movements of the logs 24 therewith.

The chub slicing assembly 40 has a pair of lower support members 132 and134 with the member 132 being upstream from member 134 and separated bya gap 136 therebetween defining the cutting area 44. The members 132 and134 extend along their length transverse to the axial feed direction ofthe logs 24 along their longitudinal axis 24 a so that the gap is in theform of an elongate, transverse slot 136 through which the blade 46 hasclearance to pass. As best seen in FIG. 4, each of the support members132 and 134 preferably include four upwardly facing concave surfaces 138in alignment with the corresponding surfaces 94 of the channels 92 onthe incline table 115. In addition, an upper guide member 140 isprovided for cooperating with the upstream support member 132. The upperguide member 140 preferably includes four concave surfaces 142 facingdownwardly toward corresponding concave surfaces 138 on the lowersupport member 132. As can be seen in FIGS. 6 and 7, the support members132 and 140 are arranged closely adjacent the outlet end 102 of theindexing feed mechanism 98 so that as the logs 24 emerge from betweenthe belt runs 108 and 110, they enter the area between facing concavesurfaces 138 and 142 of the respective members 132 and 140.

As the logs 24 advance downstream, they are supported to straddle thegap or slot 136 by the downstream support member 134 until the chubs 26are cut therefrom by the rotary blade 46. As previously mentioned, ithas been found that the use of the downstream support member 134 is ofparticular importance in obtaining the desired planar cut end-faces 34and 36 for the chubs 26 normal to the log axis 24 a. The downstreamsupport 134 keeps the end of the logs 24 from drooping or saggingdownwardly and generating an other than planar cut on the end face 34 or36 of the chubs 26.

Accordingly, the downstream support member 134 is effective to keep thelog 24 aligned along its longitudinal axis 24 a during a cuttingoperation. The width of the slot 136 between the support members 132 and134 is kept to a minimum while allowing the blade 46 to fit between themembers 132 and 134 for slicing a chub 26 off of the end of a log 24, asbest seen in FIGS. 5-7. In this manner, there is only a small portion ofthe log 24 that goes unsupported in the cutting area 44 by either of themembers 132 or 134. The illustrated blade 46 can have a maximumthickness of 0.188 inch between faces 46 a and 46 b thereof with theslot width slightly larger to provide the blade 46 with clearancebetween the members 132 and 134.

In addition to keeping the log 24 supported on either side of thecutting area 44, another important consideration in achieving planar,parallel end-faces 34 and 36 on the chubs 26 is the configuration of theblade 46. As previously discussed, it is desired to have substantiallyplanar, parallel cutting surface portions 50 and 52 on the blade faces46 a and 46 b, respectively, so that the blade 46 itself does not causeany preferential movement of the log 24 either upstream or downstreamalong the axis 24 a during a slicing operation. To this end, the blade46 is preferably beveled at the outer, circular edge 144 thereof alongboth of the blade faces 46 a and 46 b. Thus, the blade 46 includesopposite tapered surface portions 146 and 148 at the outer edge of therespective faces 46 a and 46 b that meet at a sharp tip or point 150, asbest seen in FIG. 10.

The blade 46 is mounted to its orbital shaft such that hub axis 47 a issubstantially parallel to log axis 24 a. Accordingly, as the blade 46rotates in its orbital path, the sharp point 150 at the blade peripheraledge 144 will 30 pierce the logs 24 and then will progress therethroughwith the meat 10 separating along the tapered surface portions 146 and148 as the blade continues its penetration through the log 24. At theradially inward end of the tapered surface portions 146 and 148, themeat 10 is separated by the flat, parallel cutting surface portions 50and 52. Accordingly, the rotary blade 46 herein generates equal andopposite forces on the cut meat 10 as it passes therethrough due to thegenerally symmetric configuration of the blade about the peripherythereof, including the double-bevel surfaces 146 and 148 leading to theparallel cutting surface portions 50 and 52. This blade design inconjunction with that of the log support 42 previously described, hasbeen found to generate sliced chubs 26 from the logs 24 that havewell-formed, substantially flat and parallel cut end-faces 34 and 36thereon.

Continuing with reference to FIG. 10, it can be seen that the rotaryblade 46 includes a recessed or dished area 152 radially inward from theflat cutting surface portion 50 on the blade face 46 a facing in theupstream direction during a cutting operation. One problem that has beennoted is that despite the relatively large, heavy construction of theblade, e.g. 15¾ inch diameter of stainless steel material, and the speedat which it driven, clean slicing of four meat logs 24 can be difficultto achieve. In other words, as the blade 46 is in cutting engagementwith all four logs 24, there will be a large surface area on the bladefaces 46 a and 46 b that is in contact with the meat 10. Depending onthe type and consistency of the meat 10, this large surface area ofengagement can cause the blade velocity to significantly slow and evencease up entirely generating less than clean slices and severing ofchubs 26 from the logs 24 which, in turn, can create imprecision orother than planar cut end-faces 34 and 36 as is desired. In particular,on the upstream face 46 a of the blade 46, the weight of the logs 24less the end chub portions downstream therefrom will be pushedthereagainst making it more difficult for the blade 46 to make a cleanpass through the cutting area 44 without undesirably slowing orstalling. Accordingly, the recess area 152 is provided to allow the cutend of the log 24 to expand slightly, thus slightly relieving anddecreasing the downward force applied by the logs 24 against the bladeface 46 a and more readily allowing for a clean cut of all four of thelogs 24 with the rotary blade 46 herein.

As best seen in FIGS. 1-3, the support and guide members 132, 134 and140 and the blade 46 are supported downstream of the indexing feedmechanism 98 via frame members generally designated with referencenumeral 154. In particular, there is a transverse frame member 156 whichextends across and upwardly from the outlet end 102 of the feedmechanism 98 at an incline so that it is substantially normal to the logaxis 24 a. The member 156 defines the cutting area 44 in which therotary blade 46 operates. A housing 158 for the blade drive is attachedto the downstream side of the member 156 and includes a door 160 toprovide access thereto for maintenance and the like.

Upon slicing of the chubs 26 via slicing operations at the slicingstation 18, the chubs 26 fall onto a conveyor 162, as can be seen inFIG. 1. The conveyor 162 extends between the slicing station 18 and theharping station 20 so that sliced chubs 26 are transported thereby forthe subsequent slicing operation on individual ones of the chubs 26 atthe harping station 20, as previously described.

In the preferred and illustrated form, the above-described conveyor isin the form of vibratory table 162 which has its upstream end 164generally oriented below the cutting area 44 so that sliced chubs 26will fall generally downwardly onto the vibrating table surface 166. Thetable surface 166 can be oriented at a pitch or incline in thedownstream direction so as to provide the chubs 26 with a gravity assistas they travel from the upstream end 164 toward the downstream end 168thereof.

The vibratory conveyor table 162 generally causes any chubs 26 that landon their cylindrical outer surface 38 to reorient themselves from theirless than stable orientation on the curved surface 38 to their morestable orientation that is an upright vertical orientation with one ofthe flat end-faces 34 or 36 engaged on the table surface 166. Inaddition to the curvature of surface 38 and the flatness of surfaces 34and 36, the shorter axial length of the surface 38 relative to thediameter across the surfaces 34 and 36 renders the vertical orientationof the chubs 26 more stable than when they are laying on their sides 38.The planar, parallel cut end-faces 34 and 36 also can contribute to theability of the chubs 26 to maintain a vertical orientation on the tablesurface 166 as they travel downstream thereon. To ensure that the cubs26 stay on the table surface 166, a pair of raised guide rails 170 and172 can be provided on either side of the table surface 166 extendingbetween the upstream and downstream ends 164 and 168 thereof.

As previously has been discussed, the harping and insertion stations 20and 22 are closely adjacent to each other. This provides for spaceconservation, and allows the chub advancing mechanism 56 of the harpingstation 20 to be used to shift the stacks 12 to the insertion station22, as has been described. To provide efficiencies in production, theillustrated and preferred form of the automated system 16 hereinprovides for four operating units 174 each including a set of adjacentharping and insertion stations 20 and 22, as best can be seen in FIG.12.

Chubs 26 from the vibratory conveyor table 162 are directed to each ofthe operating units 174. For this purpose, a diverter in the form of awedge guide 176 is provided on the conveyor surface 166 intermediate theends 164 and 168 thereof. The wedge guide 176 is operable to divertchubs 26 as they travel downstream on the table 162 to feed channels 178on either side of the table surface 166 toward the downstream end 168thereof. The wedge guide 176 includes a pair of guide members 180 and182 that meet at an upstream point and are mounted on the table surface166 so that they diverge from each other as they extend downstreamtoward the feed channels 178. The downstream ends of the members 180 and182 are closely adjacent inlets 184 of the innermost pair of channels178 so that chubs 26 either enter the innermost pair of channels 178 aor the outermost pair of channels 178 b. As shown in FIG. 1, a pluralityof free wheeling rollers 186 are rotatably mounted to the table surfacevia generally vertically extending bearing shafts 188 that allow therollers 186 to freely rotate thereabout. The rollers 186 are effectiveto keep the chubs 26 on the table surface 166 progressing in adownstream path thereon, and can be located adjacent the inlets 184 soas to direct the chubs 26 therein and to keep chubs 26 from entering thearea on the table surface 166 downstream of the wedge guide 176 betweenthe channels 178 a.

As previously mentioned, there are four operating units 174 and each ofthe units 174 is associated with one of the feed channels 178 forreceiving chubs 26 therefrom. In this regard, the operating units 174are mounted on a table member 190 that is generally at a lower elevationthan that of the downstream end 168 of the vibratory conveyor table 162,as best seen in FIGS. 11 and 12. As each of the operating units 174 ison the table member 190 spaced form the conveyor downstream end 168, thefeed channels 178 each include chute portions 192 that lead the chubs 26from the end 168 of the conveyor table 162 to the respective operatingunits 174.

As shown in FIG. 12, inner feed portions 192 a are associated with innerfeed channels 178 a and outer chute portions 192 b are associated withouter feed channels 178 b. The chute portions 192 each include agenerally horizontal run 194 and a generally downwardly inclined run196. In this manner, chubs in the feed channels 178 come off of thevibratory conveyor table 162 into the chute portions 192 and traversethe horizontal run 194 thereof and build up therein until run 194 issubstantially full, whereupon they enter the downward inclined run 196which allows them to be readily directed toward their respectiveoperating unit 174 in the longitudinal direction of travel denoted byarrow 197 in FIG. 13.

Each of the operating units 174, and specifically the harping station 20thereof is provided with a staging area, as has been generallydesignated with reference numeral 54. The staging area 54 is adjacentthe chub advancing mechanism 56. The staging area 54 receives a chub 26therein which is then indexed into proper position relative to theadvancing mechanism 56 for being shifted thereby via timed operation ofpower actuators 200 and 202, as will be described more fullyhereinafter. The operating units 174 each include a horizontal supportmember 204 secured to the table 190 about which the chubs 26 are indexedso that they are raised above the surface 190 a of the table 190.

More specifically, the power actuators 200 and 202 can be powercylinders 206 and 208, respectively, similar to power cylinder 66. Thepower cylinders 66, 206 and 208, all are preferably pneumatic cylinderseach including a driven cylinder plunger 209 that shifts betweenextended and retracted positions relative to its cylinder.

The horizontal support member 204 fixedly mounts three generallyparallel elongate slide bearing members 210, 212 and 214 extendingtransverse and as shown, preferably perpendicular to the longitudinaltravel direction 197 as denoted by arrow 215 in FIG. 13. The slidebearing member 210 includes a guide portion 216 thereof adjacent outletend 218 of the chute 192. Between the bearing members 210 and 212 is aslide member 220 that is shifted upon actuation of the power cylinder206.

To form the staging area 54, the slide member 220 has an open-ended chubcarrying compartment 222 at its distal end aligned with the guideportion 216 of bearing member 210 and the outlet 218 of the chuteportion 192. The compartment 299 is formed by parallel vertical sidesurfaces 224 and 226 generally aligned with sidewalls 228 and 230 of thechute portion 192 that are spaced slightly further than the diameteracross the faces 34 and 36 of the chubs 26. In addition, the width ofthe slide member 220 in the direction 197 transverse to its direction ofmovement upon actuation of power cylinder 206, and thus the size of thesurfaces 224 and 226 in this direction is approximately the same orslightly larger than the diameter across the chub faces 34 and 36. Inthis manner, the carrying compartment 222 is sized to receive a singleone of the chubs 26 upon its exit from the chute portion 192.

For directing the chubs 26 into the compartment 222, the guide portion216 of the slide bearing member 210 has upstanding wall portions 232 and234 interconnected by bottom wall portion 236, as best seen in FIG. 14.The wall portions 232 and 234 are spaced at a slightly greater distancefrom each other than the corresponding sidewalls 228 and 230 of the feedchannel chute portion 192 so that at the outlet end 218 thereof, thesidewalls 228 and 230 can fit and extend between the wall portions 232and 234 for feeding chubs 26 to the staging area compartment 222. Aspreviously mentioned, the compartment 222 is open-ended in the direction197 of movement of the chubs 26 down the chute 192. For receiving chubs26 in the compartment 222, the slide bearing member 212 closes off theopen end of the compartment distal from the outlet 218 of the chute 192so that pressure from the pushing action generated by chubs built up inthe chute 192 on the chub 26 in the compartment 222 can cause the chub26 in the compartment 222 to bear against the slide member 212, as seenin FIG. 15.

The chub 26 in the compartment 222 can be indexed to the chub advancingmechanism 56 for slicing based upon timed intervals of operation foreach of the power cylinders 66, 206 and 208 such as under control of aPLC. In this regard, when the cylinder 206 is actuated to shift itsplunger rod 209 to the extended position, the cylinder 208 has alreadybeen actuated so that its plunger rod 209 is in its retracted position.Preferably, upon actuation of the cylinder 206, the power cylinder 66will also have been actuated so that its plunger rod 209 is in itsextended position, as shown in FIG. 14 and for reasons describedhereinafter.

When the power cylinder 206 is actuated to shift its plunger rod 209 toits extended position, the slide member 220 will linearly slide in thetransverse direction 215 between the slide bearing members 210 and 212carrying the chub 26 in the compartment 222 therewith. As best seen inFIG. 15, the slide bearing members 210, 212 and 214 can be of a lowfriction plastic material with the intermediate guide member 212provided with opposing guide ways 238 and 240 formed on either sidethereof. An elongate projection 242 extends from side 244 of the slidemember 220 for a tight sliding fit in the guide way 238. The slidemember 220 can also be of a low friction plastic material similar to theslide bearing members. A v-groove 246 is formed in opposite side 248 ofthe slide member 220, and a corresponding shaped projection 249 extendsfrom raised portion 250 of the slide bearing member 210 for a slidingfit in the groove 246. The remaining components of the system 16 hereinare preferably of a food grade stainless steel material such as thetable 190, chute portions 192, support member 204, cylinders 66, 206,208, and the cylinder rods 209 therefor.

To rigidly connect the cylinder rod 209 of the power cylinder 206 to theslide member 220, an attachment head 252 is provided at the distal endof the rod 210. The slide member 220 includes a stepped well 254 formedadjacent its proximate end, including a slot opening 256 thereto throughwhich the cylinder rod 209 extends, as shown best in FIG. 17. Anintegral recessed block portion 258 is formed in the well 254, and theattachment head 252 can have an L-shaped configuration for seatingtightly thereagainst and being fastened thereto as by bolting or thelike.

When the power cylinder 206 is actuated to cause the rod 209 to shift toits extended position, the slide member 220 will shift therewithtransverse to the travel direction 197 of the chubs 26 into the stagingarea carrying compartment 222, as shown in FIG. 16. In this position,the chub 26 in the compartment 222 is ready for being indexed intoposition for being engaged by the chub advancing mechanism 56. As can beseen, the side 248 of the advanced slide member 220 spans the distancebetween upstanding wall portions 232 and 234 of the slide bearing memberguide portion 216, so that chubs 26 can continue to build up in thechute portion 192 without advancing out from the outlet end 218 thereof.In this regard, photo sensors or the like can be provided to monitor thebuild up of chubs 26 on the vibratory table 162 as well as in the feedchannels 198 to effect an automatic shutdown of the feed mechanism 98 atthe slicing station 18 until the backup of chubs has been obviated bycontinued production of sliced stacks 12.

As generally can be seen in FIG. 12, the four operating units 174 aresplit into two pairs that are generally oriented on either side of thetable 190. Accordingly, the transverse sliding of the slide members 220pushes the chubs 26 on opposite sides of the table member 190 centrallytoward each other and in alignment with chubs 26 being processed by theoperating unit 174 on the same side of the table member 190.

With the chubs 26 in the compartments 222 as shifted by the slide member220 in its extended position via piston rod 209, they will be inposition for being indexed into alignment with the chub advancingmechanism 56, and specifically the arcuate engagement end 62 thereof. Inthis regard, it is noted that the chubs 26 are to be shifted in adirection parallel to their original travel direction 197 in the chutes192 at a more central region on the table 190. For this purpose, paddlepush members 260 are employed to engage the chub 26 through the openingformed between the slide member surfaces 224 and 226 and, with theopposite opening now clear of the slide bearing member 212, through thecompartment 222 so that the chub 26 is deposited in the area alignedwith the chub advancing mechanism 56, and specifically on the lowermember 78 of the chub centering mechanism 74, as seen in FIG. 17. Tothis end, the lower member 78 can include a lead-in surface portion 262on which the chub slides once out of the compartment 222 until it isaligned between the chub centering mechanism upper and lower members 76and 78.

Referring again to FIGS. 11, 12 and 16, it can be seen that the paddlemembers 260 are formed integrally on a pair of longitudinally extendingbars 264 and 266 interconnected by a shorter joining transverse bar 268at the end of the bars 264 and 266 adjacent the downstream end of thevibratory conveyor table 162. The distal end of the plunger rod 209 ofpower cylinder 208 is rigidly connected to the transverse bar 268 atapproximately the mid-point thereon, so that actuation of the cylinder208 causes the longitudinal bars 264 and 266 to shift equally in thelongitudinal direction 197. Slotted transverse supports 267 and 269 aremounted to the table 190 adjacent ends of the bars 264 and 266 tosupport the bars 264 and 266 in outer end slots thereof (see oppositeend slots 269 a and 269 b in FIG. 25) for their sliding movements uponoperation of the cylinder 208. With the plunger rod 209 in its retractedposition, the paddle members 260 will be in the position shown in FIG.16 generally aligned with the outlet end 218 of each of the feed channelchute portions 192 associated with respective ones of the operatingunits 174 to provide clearance for the slide member 220 to index a chub26 carried thereby as has been described.

With single ones of the chubs 26 in respective carrying compartments 222of the slide members 220 indexed in direction 215 via operation of thepower cylinder 206 to its extended state, the power cylinder 208 thenfires to shift its plunger 209 to its extended position causing thepaddle members 260 to shift longitudinally through the carryingcompartments 222 with each of the four chubs 26 riding on lead-insurfaces 262 of the lower members 78 of each of the operating unitscentering mechanisms 74. In this manner, power cylinder 208 acts as acommon cylinder for driving each of the paddle members 260 associatedwith each one of the operating units 174.

As can be seen in FIG. 17, with the cylinder 208 actuated so that theplunger 209 is in its extended position, the stroke of the cylinder 208is such that the paddle member 260 will have shifted the chubs 26 off ofthe lead-in surfaces 262 to be in substantial alignment between thecentering mechanism upper and lower members 76 and 78 in each of theoperating units 174. In this position, the chubs are substantiallyaligned with the engagement ends 62 of the chub advancement mechanisms56 in each of the operating units 174.

More specifically, the advancement mechanism 56 includes a pusher member270 such as of stainless steel material and having the engagement end 62formed thereon. At the end opposite to the arcuate engagement end 62,the pusher member 270 includes an L-shaped member rigidly connectedthereto with the opposite end of the member 272 connected to distal endof the plunger rod 210 of the power cylinder 66. Accordingly, operationof the power cylinder 66 to shift the plunger rod between retracted andextended positions thereof causes the pusher member 270 to move in thetransverse direction 215 via the rigid connection provided by theL-shaped member 272 therebetween. As is apparent, each of the operatingunits 174 includes both a power cylinder 66 for its chub advancementmechanism 56 and a power cylinder 206 for the slide member 220.

As best seen in FIG. 14, the power cylinders 206 and 66 generally faceoppositely to each other in terms of the cylinder end from which theplunger rod 209 extends. In this regard, the L-member 272 allows thepower cylinder 66 to be adjacent the chub pusher member 270 that itdrives for conserving space on the table 190 in the transverse direction215. Accordingly, while actuation of the cylinder 206 so that theplunger rod 209 thereof is in its extended position causes the slidemember 220 to advance, similar operation of the power cylinder 66 withits plunger rod 209 in its extended position causes the pusher member270 to retract. Likewise, operation of the cylinder 206 so that itsplunger 209 is retracted causes the slide member 220 to similarlyretract. Operation of the cylinder 66 so that its plunger 209 isretracted causes the pusher member 270 to advance thus bringing thearcuate end 62 thereof into engagement with the chub 26 in alignmenttherewith for slicing via the harping blades 58, as described more fullyhereinafter.

Referring now to FIGS. 17 and 18, before the cylinder 66 is operated toretract its plunger 209 for advancing the pusher member 270, thecylinders 206 and 208 are timed so that after cylinder 208 is fired toits extended position for shifting the chubs 26 as shown in FIG. 17, thecylinder 206 will be fired to its retracted position to retract theslide member 220 for bringing the compartment 222 back into alignmentwith the chute portion 192 for receiving the leading chub 26 in theassociated chute portion 192 therein, as seen in FIG. 18. Either beforeor after the cylinder 206 is operated to shift to its retractedposition, the cylinder 208 can be operated to shift back to itsretracted position, as also seen in FIG. 18. Preferably, the cylinder208 is operated for retraction after the cylinder 206 has retracted theslide member 220 so that the paddle members 260 shift to their retractedposition in clearance from the distal end of slide member 220.Alternatively, the cylinder 208 can retract the paddle members 260 priorto operation of cylinder 206 for retracting the slide member 220 withthe members 260 traveling through now empty slide member compartment222.

As can be seen best in FIG. 18, the pusher member 270 has opposite sides274 and 276 adjacent the slide bearing members 212 and 214,respectively. Along the length of the pusher member sides 274 and 276are longitudinally extending projections 278 and 280, respectively, thatare formed approximately mid-way along the height of the sides 274 and276. The projection 278 is sized to mate in the elongate guide way 240of the bearing member 212 for a tight sliding fit therein. Similarly,bearing 214 includes an elongate guide way 282 such that projection 280has a tight sliding fit therein. In this manner, the pusher member 270is guided via the slide bearing members 212 and 214 for back and forthsliding in the transverse direction 215.

As previously mentioned, the arcuate engagement end 62 of the pushermember 270 has a slotted construction, as can be seen in FIGS. 13 and30. More specifically, the pusher member 270 has a body 284 having anelongate window opening 286 formed therein between the sidewalls 274 and276 thereof. The opening 286 at its forward or distal end stops short ofthe arcuate engagement end 62 of the pusher member 270. A plurality ofhorizontal slots 288 are formed in the pusher member body 284 at thedistal end 62. The slots 288 are equal in number to the number ofharping blades 58 to allow the pusher member 270 to advance the chubs 26through the blades 58 for creating the stacks 12. In the preferred andillustrated form, stacks 12 of six meat slices 30 are formed via fiveharping blades 58 such that there are likewise five horizontal slots 288formed in the pusher member arcuate end 62. From top to bottom, thepusher member 270 is sized to generally correspond to the height of thechub cylindrical surface 38 so that the engagement end 62 bears on thesurface 38 for substantially the full height thereof, less the areascorresponding to the thin or narrow slot spacings 288 formed in the end62. For secure engagement with the chub 26, the curvature of the end 62extends close to 180° about the chub surface 38. The horizontal slots288 extend rearwardly toward the pusher member opening 286 a sufficientdistance in the direction 215 to allow the entire pusher member arcuateend face 62 to be advanced past the harping blades 58 at which point themeat slices 30 have been formed and to continue to push the stack 12 tothe insertion station 22. To this end, the slots 288 extend rearwardlyin the pusher member body 284 and stop adjacent the forward end of theopening 286.

Referring next to FIGS. 19-23, the harping blades 58 and the blade mountassembly 70 therefor will be more particularly described. The blademount assembly 70 carries the blades 58 for reciprocation in thelongitudinal direction 197 as the pusher member 270 advances the chubs26 therethrough in the transverse direction 215 via actuation of thepower cylinder 66 to its retracted state. For this purpose, the blademount assembly 70 includes two pairs of longitudinal bar members 290 and292 each of which carries a predetermined number of blades 58 less thanthe total number of blades 58 in a blade set 294 needed to cut the chubs26 into the stacks 12 at each of the operating units 174, andspecifically at the harping stations 20 thereof. As shown, the blademount bar 290 carries two blades 58 and the blade mount bar 292 carriesthe remaining three blades 58 in a set 294 such that opposite movementsof the bars 290 and 292 in the longitudinal direction 197 via the bladedrive 66 will generate the desired reciprocating movement of the harpingblades 58 relative to each other.

Each one of the pairs of bar members 290 and 292 is disposed inwardrelative to the center of the table 190 of an adjacent one of thelongitudinal bars 264 and 266 so that each pair of bar members 290 and292 carries blade sets 294 for two adjacent harping stations 20 on thesame side of the table 190, as best seen in FIG. 12. More specifically,the bar member 290 is disposed between the adjacent one of the barmembers 264 or 266 and the bar member 292, which is located closest tothe center of the table 190. Each of the bars 290 and 292 includes pairsof depending arms 296 and 298, there being two such pairs of arms 296and 298 with each bar 290, 292, in the illustrated form. The arms 296and 298 include respective plate mounts 300 and 302 integral therewithfor securing the arms 296 and 298 to the bars 290 and 292. In thisregard, the plate mounts 300 and 302 are attached to inner surfaces 290a and 292 a of the respective bars 290 and 292 that are in facingrelation to each other. This allows the blades 58 carried by the twopairs of arms 296 and 298 to be aligned with each together forlongitudinal shifting in the space between two adjacent blades or overor under a blade carried by the opposite bar 290 or 292 when undergoingreciprocating action, as shown and described hereinbelow. In thismanner, the blade sets 294 are disposed in the area aligned below thespace between adjacent bar members 290 and 292.

For attaching the plate mounts 300 and 302 to the bars 290 and 292,their surfaces 290 a and 292 a each include cross-recesses 304 intowhich corresponding raised cross-portions 306 of the plate mounts 300and 302 fit. The plate mounts 300 and 302 are also fastened to the barmembers 290 and 292 via bolting or the like.

Referring more specifically to FIG. 21, the arms 296 secured to bar 292will next be described. As shown, the arm 296 projects down from oneside of the plate mount 300 thereof. Toward the lower end of the arm296, there are five narrow slots or slits 308 extending transversethrough the arm 296 and opening inwardly in a direction away from barsurface 292 a and thus toward the chub pusher member 270. Three harpingblades 58 are secured in three of the slits 308 a spaced from each otherby open slits 308 b with the blades 58 having their serrated edge 60facing the pusher member 270. For this purpose, ends 310 of the blades58 extend out from the slits 308 a into an arcuate recess area 312formed on the outer side of the leg 296. Double-headed rivets 314 extendthrough the blade ends 310 with the rivet heads 316 residing in therecess 312 so as to limit sliding of the blades 58 along their length.Arms 296 substantially identical to that carried by bar 292 as describedabove are carried by bar 290, however with the slits 308 formed so thatthey open in a direction toward the bar surface 290 a and thus towardthe pusher member 270. In addition, the arm 296 of bar 290 carries onlytwo blades 58 which are mounted in slits 308 b thereof leaving slits 308a open with the edge 60 of the blades 58 facing the pusher member 270.

The slits 308 a of the arm 296 carried by the bar 290 are verticallyaligned with the slits 308 a of the arm 296 carried by the bar 292. Theslits 308 b on the arms 296 of each bar 290 and 292 are likewisevertically aligned. In this manner, when the blades 58 arereciprocating, the two blades carried by the arm 296 of bar 290 willpass through the two open slits 308 b of arm 296 on bar 292; and, in asimilar manner, the three blades 58 carried by the arm 296 on bar 292will pass through the three open slits 308 a on arm 296 carried by bar290.

At their outermost ends 318 relative to the chubs 26 as will bedescribed hereafter, the blades 58 are mounted to mounting arms 298,such as shown in FIG. 23 with respect to bar 290. The arms 298 onlyinclude the number of blade slits 308 corresponding to the number ofblade ends 318 attached thereto as blades 58 mounted to a correspondingpair of arms 296 and 298 on the other one of the bars 290 or 292 in ablade set 294 do not need to pass therethrough during the reciprocatingaction of the harping blades 58. Thus, the arms 298 will have either twoslits if mounted to bar 290 or three slits if mounted to bar 292.Accordingly, for a blade set 294, there is one pair of arms 296 and 298on bar 290 that carry two of the blades 58 and another correspondingpair of arms 296 and 298 on bar 292 that carry the other three blades 58of the set 294. Also and has been mentioned, each pair of bars 290 and292 has two blade sets 294 associated therewith so that each bar 290,292 in a pair will have two mounting arms 296 and two mounting arms 298that it carries.

The arms 298 include enlarged lower ends 320 in the direction transverseto the length of the blades 58 for the provision of tensioning members322 on the outer side 320 a of the leg ends 320, as best seen in FIG.23. The tensioning members 322 include a forked end 324 through which athreaded adjustment member 326 passes and into a threaded recess in theenlarged end 320 of the arm 298 for securing the tensioning member 322thereto. At its other end 328, the tensioning member 322 includes a slit330 aligned with one of the slits in the arm enlarged end 320. The slits330 extend through to the outer surface 332 of the tensioning member 322and in which an arcuate recess 334 is formed. The blade ends 318 passthrough these slits 330 and are secured at the tensioning members 322 asby the double-headed rivet 314 with the heads 316 residing in the recess334.

The tensioning member 322 includes a projection 336 formed on innersurface 340 thereof facing the outer side 320 a of the arm enlarged end320. The projection 336 is seated in a groove 338 in the arm outer side320 a and is allowed to pivot slightly therein for tension adjustmentsof the blade 58 associated with the tensioning member 322. In thisregard, the tensioning member 322 inner surface is 340 faceted so thaton either side of the projection 336, there are surface portions 340 aand 340 b that taper from the projection 336 to either tensioning memberend 324 and 328, respectively, and away from the outer side 320 a of thearm 298.

Accordingly, turning head 340 of the adjustment member 326 in atightening direction pivots the tensioning member 322 to bring thesurface portion 340 a closer to arm surface 320 a with the surface 340 bpivoting further from arm surface 320 a with the projection 336 actingas a fulcrum. Because the blade ends 318 are secured in recess 334located adjacent the tensioning member end 328, the tightening action ofthe adjustment member 326 causes a pulling force to be exerted on theblade 358 via the tensioning member 322 having its other end 310 securedto arm 296 so as to increase the tension thereon. To lessen the tension,the adjustment member 326 is turned in the loosening direction to allowthe tensioning member 322 to pivot about projection 336 so that thetension in the blade 58 pulls the surface 340 b closer to the armsurface 320 a with the tensioning member 322 pivoting about theprojection 336 so that surface 340 a pivots away from the arm surface320 a. In this manner, the tensioning members 322 allow each blade 58 tohave their tension levels individually controlled via the tensioningmember 322 associated therewith. Precision control over the bladetension allows the optimum tension levels to be determined such as fordifferent types of meats 10, temperatures thereof, and/or operatingspeeds of the various components of the automated system 16 herein, andspecifically at the harping station 20 thereof, in terms of minimizingflexing and/or breakage of the blades 58.

Reciprocation of the harping blades 58 in a blade set 294 is caused byoperation of the eccentric blade drive 68, as previously discussed. Moreparticularly, the two pairs of blade mount bars 290, 292 extend in thelongitudinal direction 197 and are supported for reciprocation alongtheir length by the transverse slotted support bars 268 and 269 utilizedfor supporting the paddle member longitudinal bars 264 and 266 at eitherend of the table 190 via interior slots 342 formed in the support bars268 and 269, as can be seen in FIG. 25 with reference to support bar269. As shown, retainer members 344 can be fastened to the tops of thebars 268 and 269 with each retainer member 344 spanning across twoadjacent support slots 342.

Each of the two pair of blade mount bars 290 and 292 are operativelyconnected to the eccentric blade drive 68. As best seen in FIG. 11, theblade drive 68 is disposed at the distal end of the table 190 from thedownstream end 168 of the chub conveyor table 162. Ends of the bars 290and 292 projecting through the slots supports 342 of the support bar 269have devises 346 attached thereto, as shown in FIG. 25. The pivotalactuator 72 is in the form of a pivotal, oscillating plate member 348which is connected at one end 350 to the eccentric drive 68 and at itsother end 352 to the clevis 346. The plate 348 is pivotally attachedbetween sides 346 a and 346 b of the clevis via a pivot pin 354extending between the clevis sides 346 a and 346 b and through the plateend 352. The eccentric blade drive 68 is shown in FIGS. 24-27.

The eccentric drive 68 includes a drive shaft 356 extending along itsaxis 356 a oriented in the transverse direction 215. Along the length ofthe drive shaft 356 are formed eccentric sections 358, each section 358being associated with one of the blade mount bars 290 or 292. As bestillustrated in FIG. 26, the eccentric sections 358 each include aneccentric drive portion 360 and a large annular ring bearing 362. Theeccentric drive portion 360 is mounted to the drive shaft 356 forrotation therewith with the drive portion 360 including an offset lobeportion 364. The lobe portion 364 is formed such that when inner race366 is pressed onto outer surface 368 of the drive 10 portion 360, thecentral axis of the annular ring bearing 362 will be offset from thelongitudinal axis 356 a of the drive shaft 356. As shown, the lobeportion 364 will extend for a greater radial extent from the drive axis356 a to the outer surface 368 than the remainder of the drive portion360.

The plate member 348 has its end 350 enlarged relative to its pivot end352 so that the plate 348 has a generally triangular configuration. Atthe enlarged end 350 there is a large circular opening 370 for beingmounted onto outer race 372 of the ring bearing 362. Accordingly, eachplate member 348 is attached to one of the eccentric sections 358 of thedrive shaft 356 via one of the ring bearings 362. As the drive shaft 356rotates, the eccentric section 358 causes the attached plate member 348to orbit about the shaft axis 356 thus alternately pulling on theconnected blade mount bar 290, 292 as the shaft 356 rotates to shift thelobe portion 364 to the point furthest from the bar support 269 andpushing on the blade mount bar 290, 292 as the shaft 356 rotates toshift the lobe portion 364 to be at its closest point to the bar support269.

The eccentric sections 358 are mounted to the drive shaft 356 such thatoffset lobe portions 364 in a pair of sections 358 associated with apair of blade mount bars 290 and 292 have their respective offset lobeportions 364 spaced from each other by 180° about the drive shaft 356.In this manner, when one of the blade mount bars 290, 292 is undergoinga pulling action via its associated eccentric section 358, the otherblade mount bar 290, 292 in the pair is undergoing an opposite pushingaction via its associated eccentric section 358. Accordingly, the blades58 carried by the mounting arms 296 and 298 on the respective blademount bars 290 and 292 will alternate in their motion relative to eachother so as to produce a slicing action on the chub 26 being pushedtherethrough with the pusher member 270 of the chub advancing mechanism56. In other words, opposite faces of a slice will be formed by blades58 that are traveling in opposite directions to each other.

The offset lobe portion 364 is sized to provide the plate members 348with a predetermined travel distance or stroke in the direction 197 suchthat a pair of associated adjacent blade mount bars 290 and 292 shiftrelative to one another whereby the outer arm 298 on one of the bars290, 292 will not travel sufficiently to engage an adjacent inner arm296 on the other of the bars 290, 292. In this regard, only centralportions 58 a of the blades 58 disposed between the arms 296 are exposedto the chub 26 pushed therethrough. It is at these portions 58 a thatthe blades 58 secured to the arms 296 and 298 of one of the bars 290,292 are mounted to overlap the blades 58 secured to the arms 296 and 298of the other one of the bars 290, 292 for undertaking the scissor-likeslicing action relative to each other as the blades 58 associated withone of the bars 290, 292 and the blades 58 associated with the other ofthe bars 290, 292 travel in opposite directions relative to each other,generally toward and away from each other in direction 197. The spacingof the arms 296 on respective bars 290 and 292 at its minimum willalways be greater than the size of the pusher member 270 in thedirection 197 so that its arcuate engagement end portion 62 can fittherebetween as it pushes the chubs 26 through the alternately,reciprocating blade portions 58 a. In practice, the blades 58 undergotwelve inches of total reciprocating travel for a full slicing cycle ofa chub 26, which takes on the order of 0.5 second to complete.

Referring again to FIG. 25, the drive shaft 356 is mounted for rotationin bearing blocks 374 and 376 at either end thereof. One end 378 of theshaft 356 extends beyond the bearing 374 and has a large pulley member380 attached thereto. As can be seen in FIG. 11, a motor 382 for theblade drive 68 has a small drive pulley 384 attached to its output end.A drive belt 386 is trained about the drive pulley 384 and the drivenpulley 380 to impart rotation to the drive shaft 356 upon operation ofthe motor 382. Accordingly, the output speed of the motor 382 and thespeed reduction provided by the relative sizing of the pulleys 380 and384 will govern the speed at which the blade mount bars 290 and 292 andthus the blades 58 carried thereby reciprocate for slicing of the chubs26 into stacks 12 of meat slices 30. It has been found that a preferredrange of reciprocating blade travel of approximately 7″ to 12″ inconjunction with the preferred operation force of 10 psi of the cylinder66 for driving the pusher member 270 against the chub 26 to advance itthrough the blades 58 provides well-formed meat slices 30.

Each of the operating units 174 includes a chub centering mechanism 74,as shown in FIGS. 28-30. As previously discussed, the centeringmechanism 74 operates to keep the vertical center of the chub 26 heldbetween the upper and lower plate members 76 and 78 aligned with thevertical center of the blades 58 in a blade set 294, e.g. at the thirdblade 58 from the top or bottom of a five blade 58 blade set 294. Thisensures that the upper and lower slices 30 formed from a chub 26 will beof equal thickness despite minor variation in the axial heights ofdifferent chubs 26.

The chub 26 is pushed between the members 76 and 78 via the lead-insurface 262 provided on member 78 by a paddle member 260, as previouslydescribed. A pressure source 388 drives a linkage system 390 thatmaintains pressure equally distributed on either side of a center lineof force application to keep the chub 26 centered with respect theretowith the chub held between the plates 76 and 78 engaged against thefaces 34 and 36 thereof.

More specifically, a small pneumatic cylinder 392 is operable to exertpressure along an output shaft member 394 having link members generallydesignated 396 pivotally attached thereto at one end thereof and attheir other ends pivotally attached to parallel shafts 398 and 400 ofthe respective plate members 76 and 78. The link members 396 areoperable to allow the plates 76 and 78 to shift up and down toaccommodate for changes in height of the chubs 26 and to tie thesemovements of the plate members 76 and 78 to each other.

A guide frame 402 is provided for the link members 396. The link members396 include a pair of upper and lower proximate link members 404 and 406and a pair of upper and lower distal link members 408 and 410. Guidesurfaces 412-418 are provided on the frame 402 corresponding to ends ofthe links 404-410 pivotally attached to the plate shafts 398 and 400.Accordingly, as the shaft member 394 advances relative to the cylinder392, the ends of the links 404-410 will ride on their correspondingguide surfaces 412-418 and move toward the shaft member 394 causing theplate members 76 and 78 to move in equal amounts toward each other.Likewise, when the shaft member 394 retracts relative to the cylinder392, the ends of the links 404-410 will ride on the associated surfaces412-418 away from the shaft member 394 shifting the plates 76 and 78 inequal amounts away from each other.

As is apparent, should a chub 26 that is larger in size than apreviously processed chub 26 be slid between the plate members 76 and 78via the lead-in surface 262, the above-described linkage system 390 willcause the plate member 78 to shift downwardly while the plate member 76will shift an equal and opposite amount upwardly, thereby keeping thevertical center of the chub 26 that is to be processed next at the samelocation as the vertical center of the previously processed smaller chub26. In a like manner, any movement of one of the plates 76 or 78 toaccommodate a smaller chub 26 than one that was previously processedwill also include a corresponding movement of the other plate member 76or 78 in an equal amount toward the other plate 76 or 78 thereby keepingthe vertical centers of the chubs 26 identical.

Referring more specifically to FIGS. 29 and 30, there it can be seenthat the plate members 76 and 78 extend in the direction 215 beyondtheir respective shafts 398 and 400. In addition, it is noted that theshafts 398 and 400 extend in the direction 197 parallel to bars 264, 266and bars 290, 292. The shafts 398 and 400 will be disposed between thebar 264 or 266, depending on which side of the table 190 the centeringmechanism 74 is located, and the pair of blade mount bars 290, 292 onthat side of the table 190. The plates 76 and 78 include portions 420and 422, respectively, that extend in the direction 215 beyond theadjacent blade mount bars 290 and 292 with the upper plate portion 420extending above the uppermost blade 58 in the associated blade set 294and the lower plate portion 424 extending below the lowest blade 58 inthe blade set 294. The plate portions 420 and 422 extend past theinnermost blade mount bar 292 to the insertion station 22.

The insertion stations 22 for each of the operating units 174 is at thecenter of the table 190 so that all four insertion stations 22 arealigned with each other, as best seen in FIG. 12. Thus, the distal endsof the plate portions 420 and 422 terminate adjacent the insertionstations 22 at the center of the table 190, as can be seen in FIGS. 29and 30. The chub pusher member 270 is advanced by operation of itscylinder 66 to its retracted state such that the arcuate end portion 62thereof travels between the upper and lower members 76 and 78 of thechub centering device 74 and past the distal ends of the respectiveplate portions 420 and 422 to deposit the sliced chub 26 in its stackedform at the insertion station 22, as depicted in FIGS. 29-32.

Referring to FIGS. 32-37, the insertion station 22 includes a receptacle424 for receiving the stacks 12 as they are slid out from between thecentering mechanism members 76 and 78 via the chub pusher member 270.The receptacle 424 can include an arcuate or concave upstanding wall 426facing the pusher member arcuate engagement end 62 such that when thepusher member 270 has been fully advanced, the engagement end face 62will cooperate with the concave wall 426 to completely encircle the chubouter surface 38 about 360° thereof. To this end, in the preferred form,the upstanding wall 426 will extend approximately 180° to cooperate withthe preferred approximately 180° of curvature of the pusher memberarcuate end 62, as shown in FIG. 32.

A small, cylindrical portion 428 can be raised from the table 190 at thebottom of the receptacle 424, a portion of which forms the bottom of thewall 426 and is integral therewith. The cylindrical portion 428 has aheight corresponding generally to the level at which the centeringmechanism lower member 78 is raised above the table 190. Referring toFIGS. 33 and 34, at the bottom of the receptacle 426, a cut-out opening430 is formed in the table 190. The stack gating mechanism 82 is in theform of an elongate, apertured gate member 432 that is slidingly indexedback and forth between support and release positions thereof. In thesupport position, a circular aperture 434 thereof, substantiallycorresponding in shape to the cut-out opening 430 and slightly largerthan the diameter across the chub faces 34 and 36 is shifted so as to beout of alignment with the receptacle 424, as shown in FIGS. 35 and 36.After the stack 12 is received in the receptacle 424 and the receivingtray 14 is indexed into alignment with the station 22, the gate member432 can then be indexed to bring the aperture 434 thereof into alignmentwith the receptacle opening 430 to allow the stack 12 to fall into thealigned tray compartment 28 therebelow.

More particularly, after the chub pusher member 270 has been advanced toshift the stack 12 to the insertion station 22 (FIG. 32) via operationof the power cylinder 66 thereof to its retracted state, the cylinder 66is again fired to its extended state to retract the pusher member 270(FIG. 35). Thereafter, the stack guide 84 is operable via actuator 86thereof to bring the weighted engagement head 88 into contact with thetop face 34 or 36 of the chub 26, as shown in FIG. 36. At this time, thegate member 432 is indexed to its release position shown in FIGS. 34 and37 as by a power 30 actuator or cylinder (not shown) whereby the stack12 falls under the guidance of stack guide head 88 into the alignedcompartment 28 therebelow.

Since all four insertion stations are aligned centrally on the table190, the gate member 432 can extend in the longitudinal direction 197 toeach of the stations 22 and be provided with four apertures 434 for eachof the station receptacles 424. With the gate member 432 in its supportposition, and four stacks 12 at each of the insertions stations 22, thestack guide actuator 86 is operable to bring the weighted engagementheads 88 at each station 22 into engagement with the chubs 26, asdescribed above. More specifically, the stack guide actuator 86 caninclude a single common power cylinder in the form of pneumatic cylinder436 that shifts a framework assembly 438 up and down vertically as thecylinder plunger 209 is advanced and retracted, respectively. Theframework 438 includes a plurality of lugs 440 formed thereon which caninclude sleeve bushings 441 pressed therein. The framework assembly 438extends longitudinally in the direction 197 centrally along the table190 and is guided for its vertical movement by vertical guide rods 442and 444, extending through the bushings 441 and mounted to the table 190adjacent the longitudinal ends thereof. The weighted engagement heads 88are integrally formed at the bottom of each of the shafts 446 andenlarged relative thereto so as to be slightly smaller than the chubfaces 34, 36 for fitting through the openings 430 and 434. The shafts446 are fixedly attached to the framework assembly 438 via the mountinglugs 440 for vertical shifting therewith.

Accordingly, after the pusher member 270 has shifted a stack 12 into theinsertion station receptacle 424, the pneumatic cylinder 436 isevacuated to allow the plunger 209 to retract therein with the weightedengagement heads 88 on the bottom ends of the shafts 436 resting withits entire weight on the top face 34 or 36 of the stacks 12. Before thegate member 432 is shifted to its release position, the tray conveyor inthe form of a pin conveyor 80 will be indexed so that the compartments28 of four of adjacent packages or trays 14 extending in direction 197are aligned below the four receptacles 424. With the tray compartments28 so aligned, the gate member 432 can then be slidingly indexed to itsrelease position, and the stacks 12 will fall into the alignedcompartments 28 with the engagement heads 88 falling a predetermineddistance with the stack 12, as shown in FIG. 37. Thus, the engagementheads 88 will guide the stack 12 for a vertical fall and oppose anytendency for the stack slices 30 to shift out from the desiredcylindrical configuration such as due to outside influences during thedescent of the stack 12. For instance, if there is a tendency for thestack 12 to start shifting so that its axis is tilted from the vertical,this tendency for shifting will be transferred between the slices 30 tothe topmost slice in the stack 12. However, because the head 88 isengaged flush against the top slice keeping it properly verticallyaligned, this will resist any shifting tendency in the remainder of thestack 12 thus maintaining it in its well-formed configuration with itsaxis vertically oriented which, in turn, allows the stack 12 to properlyfit into the aligned compartment 28 therebelow such as without havingthe slices 30 engage against sidewalls 28 a of the compartments 28 asthey fall therein.

The heads 88 preferably do not fall the entire distance corresponding tothe distance the stacks 12 fall so that with the stacks 12 received inthe tray compartments 28, the bottom 448 of the engagement head 88 willbe spaced from the uppermost slice 30 in the stack 12. In this manner,when the cylinder 436 is fired to its extended state for lifting theheads 88 back through the aligned openings 430 and 434, there will be noproblems relating to sticking of the meat slices 30 to the head 88 andthus disturbing the well-formed stack 12 placed into the traycompartment 28. For this purpose, washers 450 fixedly attached to theshafts 446 at a predetermined position thereon such as disposed adjacentthe top thereof can engage a vertically fixed bearing lug 440 throughwhich the shaft 446 extends to limit the downward travel of the weightedengagement head 88. It is the distance between the washer 450 and thefixed lug 440 that will determine the distance the head 88 travels inthe downward direction, with this distance sized to be slightly lessthan the travel distance of the stacks 12 from the table 190 into thetray compartment 28, as previously discussed.

While there have been illustrated and described particular embodimentsof the present invention, it will be appreciated that numerous changesand modifications will occur to those skilled in the art, and it isintended in the appended claims to cover all those changes andmodification which fall within the true spirit and scope of the presentinvention.

1. An automated system for slicing meat and placing the sliced meat instacks into a package therefor, the system comprising: a slicing stationincluding a chub slicer for slicing a chub of predetermined size from alog of meat fed to the slicer, the predetermined chub size substantiallycorresponding to a predetermined amount of meat to be placed in acompartment of the package; a chub harping station including spacedharping blades and a chub advancement mechanism, the harping stationreceiving chubs from the slicing station with the chubs pushed past theblades with a predetermined amount of force via the chub advancementmechanism to form a predetermined number of stacked meat slices from thechub; and a stack insertion station for receiving the stacked meatslices from the harping station and including a stack guide thatsubstantially maintains control over the stack of meat slices forautomated transfer thereof into the package compartment.
 2. The systemof claim 1 wherein the stack insertion station is adjacent to the chubharping station so that the advancement mechanism of the harping stationfeeds the stacked meat slices to the stack insertion station, and aconveyor between the slicing station and the chub harping station thattransports the chubs from the slicing station to the harping station. 3.The system of claim 1 wherein the chub slicer includes a rotary bladehaving opposite sides with substantially parallel planar cutting surfaceportions, and a slotted log support to allow the blade to pass the logsupport for slicing through the log fully supported thereon on eitherside of the blade so that sliced end surfaces of the chubs aresubstantially planar for generating well formed slices from the chubs atthe harping station.
 4. The system of claim 1 wherein the harping bladeshave an elongate flat configuration with a cutting edge formed along thelength thereof, and the harping station includes a drive and blade mountassembly that cooperate to allow the blades to undergo reciprocatingmovement in the lengthwise direction of the blades transverse to thepushing of the chubs so that the cutting edges slice through the chubwith the predetermined force amount of the advancement mechanismminimized to avoid deflecting the blades with the pushed chub.
 5. Thesystem of claim 4 wherein the drive is an eccentric drive, and a pivotalactuator between the eccentric drive and blade mount assembly thattransfers output of the eccentric drive to reciprocating motion of theblade mount.
 6. The system of claim 4 wherein the chubs havesubstantially flat parallel ends and a cylindrical outer surfaceextending between the ends, a pusher of the advancement mechanism, andthe engagement portion is an arcuate chub engagement portion of thepusher sized to engage the chub for the full distance along of the outersurface between the ends of the chub and having slots to allow theblades to pass therethrough as engagement portion travels past theblades, and a chub centering mechanism including opposing members eachone of which presses substantially equally against an opposite end ofthe chub for forming end slices of substantially even thickness in astack of meat slices despite variations in chub size.
 7. The system ofclaim 1 wherein the stack insertion station includes a package deliveryconveyor that aligns packages with the stacks of meat slices for receiptin a compartment thereof, and the stack guide includes an actuator whichcauses the guide to push on an end of the stack with the package inalignment for shifting the meat slices into the package compartmentwhile maintaining the slices in the stack thereof.
 8. The system ofclaim 7 wherein the stack is vertically oriented at the stack insertionstation, the stack guide includes is a weight that engages against atopmost slice in the stack for controllably shifting the stackdownwardly into the package compartment, and a stack gating mechanism atthe insertion station that has a support position for supporting thevertical stack, and a release position to allow the stack with theweight thereagainst to fall into the compartment of the package alignedtherebelow.
 9. An automated processing method for a meat product, themethod comprising: cutting a section of the meat product from a largersection thereof, the section corresponding to a predetermined amount ofthe meat product to be placed in a package; slicing the section into apredetermined number of slices that are formed simultaneously in asingle slicing operation so that a stack of the slices is formed;aligning the package with the stack of slices for receipt in thepackage; and shifting the stack of slices automatically into the alignedpackage to avoid manual handling of the stack.
 10. The method of claim 9wherein the section cutting includes supporting the larger section oneither side of a cutting area and passing substantially parallel planaropposite surface portions of a cutting blade through the larger sectionwith the cutting area providing clearance for the blade to passtherethrough for forming substantially planar end surfaces of the cutmeat product section.
 11. The method of claim 9 wherein the section issliced by holding opposite cut end surfaces of the meat product sectionand pushing the cut section through a set of harping blades with thecenter of the section aligned with the center of blade set to generatesubstantial equal thickness end slices in a stack.
 12. The method ofclaim 11 wherein the section slicing includes reciprocating the harpingblades in a direction transverse to the pushed direction of the cutsection.
 13. The method of claim 12 wherein the harping blades arereciprocated by shifting a first predetermined number of the blades inone direction and a second predetermined number of the blades in anopposite direction and then reversing said blade shifting to generatealternate reciprocating slicing movements of the first and secondpredetermined numbers of blades.
 14. The method of claim 9 wherein thestack of slices is shifted by engaging one end of the stack anddirecting the stack into the package with an end of the stack oppositethe one end being the leading end to enter the package.
 15. The methodof claim 14 wherein the section is sliced by orienting the section sothat a vertical stack of slices is formed with the opposite ends beingvertically spaced from each other, the package is aligned by deliveringpackages so that an opening therein is aligned below the leading end ofthe stack, and the stack of slices is shifted by removing a bottomsupport of the stack with the package opening in aligned positiontherebelow to allow the stack to undergo a controlled free fall into thepackage via the engaged trailing end of the stack.